MAKE A PLAN FOR GROWING DEMAND |
COVID-19 shutdowns have driven fantastic demand for all types of home services. Expect the trend to continue through this fall (strong demand for landscape lighting, for example) and into the holidays.
Consumers aren't likely to go back to old habits quickly. Many believe the strong activity in upgrades will continue into the 2021 season.
Additionally, the residential housing market is red hot, fueled by low supply and low mortgage rates. Expect even stronger home construction and home remodeling numbers in the first half of 2021.
How can your company be ready for increased demand?
Train your team. Participate in training programs. There's a wealth of new videos and webinars that you can use to educate both new and veteran team members. Ask us for suggestions.
Diversify to capture more potential. Offer a larger menu of products and services to your clients. Get on board with new services to smooth out weather and economic dips.
Adopt labor-saving practices. Find new ways to get more work done with the same
number of people. Make investments in productivity enhancers will streamline your operation and
cut out unnecessary and redundant steps. Focus team members on billable work, not busy-work.
The Team at North South Supply
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CHECK OUT THIS MONTH'S SPECIAL OFFERS |
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A CUSTOMER JUST ASKED YOUR CREW LEADER ABOUT ADDITIONAL SERVICES - WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?!
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Customers talk to your technicians, crew leaders and field workers all of the time. They ask them for additional services that can add to your bottom line.... but your team members forget to turn in these leads!
Don't lose the opportunity to sell another service to another contractor.
The customer will hire someone to do the work. Make sure it is YOU!
1) Write up your process for capturing and reporting customer requests back to your office.
2) Offer an incentive for every sales lead that turns into a successful sale. This will get your technicians' attention!
3) Roll out your process in your weekly meeting. Test your process and verify that technicians are using it. (If you're not getting forms, it's not working!)
Not following up on requests is costing you business and profits. These are the easiest leads to capture and close. Develop a process and follow-up.
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GETTING THE MOST FROM YOUR SALESPERSON / ESTIMATOR |
To rapidly grow a landscape company, you need a disciplined, motivated salesperson / estimator.
Tips to grow the capabilities and success of your estimator(s):
Salespeople are motivated by incentives. Adopt creative incentive programs that encourage them to drive both revenue and profitability. A "piece of the action" on the profits they book keep your goals and their goals in alignment.
Build a production plan. Build a sales plan that matches your production capacity. Tie incentives to filling your capacity, and encourage operations and sales to team up to maximize what's booked.
Provide support for sales staff. Salespeople like to focus on customer meetings and winning projects, not on paperwork tasks. Free them from minutiae so they can focus on closing work.
Measure, measure, measure. Implement sales metrics that tie directly to your revenue goals and marketing costs. For example, you should track cost-per-sales lead, close rates, and average margins.
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BOOST PRESSURE, BOOST SALES |
As demand grows for consistent water pressure in homes (multiple showers, laundry, irrigation systems, etc.), customers are finding that municipal water supplies alone aren't measuring up. How can you take advantage of this gap in the market? Flint & Walling offers an all-in-one solution with its VP Series City Water Booster Pump system. These pumps are plug-and-play - no need to be a certified electrician to install - and plumb directly in-line with existing municipal water supplies.
Beyond providing a pressure boost, these units offer self-diagnostic features that extend the life of the pump and provide peace of mind for the homeowner. The pump only turns on when demand requires it to do so, saving on energy costs. While running, the unit can recognize low flow and shut down to protect from running dry. It will turn on hourly to test water flow and continue running or shut down based on what it detects.
The VP Series is a self-contained unit with a small footprint and is offered in ½HP (model VP05) and 1HP (model VP10). For more information, click here
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A BETTER WAY TO INSTALL TREE-MOUNTED LIGHTS |
Creating a down-light or moonlighting effect with tree-mounted fixtures is a popular and impressive technique. When mounting fixtures, consider the environmental impact the mount will have on the health of the tree.
The perfect solution is the TreeLight Mount™ by King Innovation.
The single point installation of the TreeLight Mount™ makes it less likely to infect a tree. Additionally, the 3.5-inch stand-off bolt allows for tree growth. The mount is made from 100% stainless steel with a bronze powder coat finish for a maintenance-free, tree-safe installation. Compatible with most brands, this product is a must have for any installer.
Install the TreeLight Mount™ in three easy steps:
1) Using a 5/16" hex drive socket, drive the TreeLight Mount™ into tree until the threaded/uncoated area is no longer visible
2) Thread your preferred landscape light fixture to the ½" NPT threaded female fitting
3) Affix lead wire to tree using desired method
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HOW LONG TO WAIT BEFORE PRESSURIZING THAT PVC REPAIR? |
Download the Weld-On Toolbox app on your mobile device (iPhone / Android) to estimate PVC solvent set and cure times anywhere at your convenience. Calculators and chart values are for general reference only. Field conditions and pipe and fitting dimensions can vary these times significantly.
In damp or humid weather, always remember to allow 50% more set and cure time.
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LANDSCAPE LIGHTING TECHNIQUE: UPLIGHTING |
Tiered pricing is an effective marketing strategy that is used in everything from automobiles and gasoline to cable TV and theme parks. A good-better-best plan helps customers understand the different features and think about which ones they value. When customers have choices, they are more likely to buy - and buy faster, according to the Harvard Business Review.
Kichler Lighting offers a three-tiered system of accent lights, including a very "good" drop-in LED accent fixture, as well as the ever-popular integrated 12V LED accent (Gen 1.5) and the new best-in-class Variable Lumen Output (VLO) accent.
The graphic at the bottom of this article shows three tiers of accent lights. It is a customer-driven sales tool and is available as a downloadable PDF.
These are all reasons to lead your customer toward the Kichler® 12V integrated LED accent which, over time, will bring greater satisfaction. Read more below about how these two types of products, which may look similar on the outside, are very different inside.
WHY TIERED PRICING WORKS
People prefer choices, rather than take-it-or-leave-it offers. The trick with good-better-best plans is not to overwhelm the customer with too many choices, but give them enough information to feel in control, according to Rafi Mohammed, a market researcher and consultant . If they can afford at least one option, they are more likely to decide right away that they want to buy from you. Then, they will devote their remaining energy to deciding at what level.
While most people will lean toward the middle option, don't underestimate the number who will choose the "best" option. Up to 40% of consumers will choose "the best" when given a choice.
Give each customer an opportunity to appreciate the best-in-class option and to get familiar with the different price points. Help them understand why their home and landscape will look better with VLO accents - and why they will stay looking better for many years.
HOW TO WALK YOUR CUSTOMER THROUGH THE OPTIONS
What is the best way to walk your customer through the three tiers of accent lights? Every salesperson will have his or her individual preferences, but here are tips from the experts:
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Get a sense of which product features might be most important to your customer. Be a good observer of the property inside and out, and see what you can learn through casual conversation.
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Create an easy decision path. Help the customer to quickly discern the benefits of each tier.
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Keep it simple. Not every feature is worthy of mention, only those that could tip their decision one way or another.
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It's OK to use the words "good," "better" and "best" because it helps the customer to understand the situation faster.
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Guide the customer through the tiers, emphasizing the added features and why they would be important to them.
The following graphic compares three tiers of Kichler® accent lights in detail. It is intended as a sales tool and is available as a downloadable PDF. It is written from the customer's perspective.
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